Birds and us : a 12,000 year history, from cave art to conservation

From award-winning author and ornithologist Tim Birkhead, a sweeping history of the long and close relationship between birds and humansSince the dawn of human history, birds have stirred our imagination, inspiring and challenging our ideas about science, faith, art, and philosophy. We have worshiped birds as gods, hunted them for sustenance, adorned ourselves with their feathers, studied their wings to engineer flight, and, more recently, attempted to protect them. InBirds and Us,award-winning writer and ornithologist Tim Birkhead takes us on a dazzling epic journey through our mutual history with birds, from the ibises mummified and deified by Ancient Egyptians to the Renaissance fascination with woodpecker anatomy―and from the Victorian obsession with egg collecting to today’s fight to save endangered species and restore their habitats.Spanning continents and millennia,Birds and Uschronicles the beginnings of a written history of birds in ancient Greece and Rome, the obsession with falconry in the Middle Ages, and the development of ornithological science. Moving to the twentieth century, the book tells the story of the emergence of bird-watching and the field study of birds, and how they triggered an extraordinary flowering of knowledge and empathy for birds, eventually leading to today’s massive worldwide interest in birds―and the realization of the urgent need to save them.Weaving in stories from Birkhead’s life as scientist, including far-flung expeditions to wondrous Neolithic caves in Spain and the bustling guillemot colonies of the Faroe Islands, this rich and fascinating book is an unforgettable account of how birds have shaped us, and how we have shaped them. "Since the dawn of human history, birds have stirred our imagination, inspiring and challenging our ideas about science, faith, art and philosophy. Looking to the skies above, we have variously worshipped them as gods, hunted them for sustenance, adorned ourselves in their feathers, studied their wings to engineer flight and, more recently, attempted to protect them. In Birds and Us, award-winning writer and ornithologist Tim Birkhead takes us on an epic and dazzling journey through this mutual history with birds, from the ibises mummified and deified by Ancient Egyptians to Renaissance experiments on woodpecker anatomy, from Victorian obsessions with egg collecting to the present fight to save endangered species and restore their habitats. Weaving in stories from his own life as a scientist, including far-flung expeditions to wondrous Neolithic caves in Spain and the bustling guillemot colonies of the Faroe Islands, this rich and fascinating book is the culmination of a lifetime's research and unforgettably shows how birds shaped us, and how we have shaped them"--Publisher's description. A Sweeping And Lyrical History Of The Relationship Between Birdlife And Humankind Over Twelve Millennia, Exploring How Birds Have Captured Our Imaginations And Inspired Our Culture And Our Science. In Birds And Us Award-winning Writer And Ornithologist Tim Birkhead Takes Us On An Epic And Dazzling Journey Through Our Mutual History With Birds, From The Ibises Mummified And Deified By Ancient Egyptians To Renaissance Experiments On Woodpecker Anatomy, From Victorian Obsessions With Egg Collecting To The Present Fight To Save Endangered Species And Restore Their Habitats. Weaving In Stories From His Own Life As A Scientist, Including Far-flung Expeditions To Neolithic Caves In Spain And The Guillemot Colonies Of The Faroe Islands, This Ambitious Book Is The Culmination Of A Lifetime's Research And Unforgettably Demonstrates How Birds Shaped Us, And How We Have Shaped Them.